Norman Reedus (Daryl)

An artist, photographer, and model, Reedus appeared in a lot of designer ads before a star turn in 1999’s vigilante thriller The Boondock Saints (right). He also made appearances in Deuces Wild, Blade II, and the WB’s Charmed.

'The Walking Dead' cast: Where you've seen them before

To celebrate the Oct. 22 Season 8 premiere of The Walking Dead— the series’ 100th episode — Yahoo TV will be posting a new TWD-related story every day through the season opener.

Everybody loves zombies. But The Walking Dead wouldn’t be the mega-success it is if the audience didn’t care about who the zombies were chasing. The AMC drama debuted without big-name stars; instead, it featured an ensemble cast of both veteran and newbie actors. Led by Andrew Lincoln (best known as the guy who held up the cue cards in Love Actually), the once-unknown cast is now full of bona fide stars. But they all started out as most actors do: in bit roles, commercials, and soaps.

Here’s a rundown of what the Walking Dead stars did before they were famous.

The Walking Dead Season 8 premieres Oct. 22 at 9 p.m. on AMC.

Masterson comes from an acting family — three of her brothers (Danny, Chris, and Jordan) are all actors. She started out as a kid on Young and the Restless and on her brother Christopher’s show Malcolm in the Middle (right) and before moving on to small roles in Definitely, Maybe, Greek, and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.